Laboda
4,313 m
Georgia, Russia
Also known as ლაბოდა, Лабода ГлавныйAlso known as
ლაბოდა · Лабода Главный
- Elevation
- 4,313 m
- Prominence
- 968 m
- Difficulty
- 5/10
- Easy alpine
- Best Season
- Jul–Aug
- Routes
- 1
AdvisoryReported 18 Sep 2026
The UK Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office advises against all travel to Russia because of the war in Ukraine; its ability to help British nationals is extremely limited.
gov.uk
Routes
1Sources differ: 2A (Russian), east buttress, combined; H. Raeburn's party, 1914 (Soviet guide 'Karaugom. Digoria. Tsey' (kmvline.ru), route 64)
The easiest route on Main Laboda, on the Main Caucasus Ridge at the head of Digoria: from the Taimazi meadow up the Tanadon valley and the Tanatseti glacier to a bivouac high on its western branch, then a bergschrund and an ice-snow slope with short rock steps along the east buttress to the summit. Two days.
About 58% of this line is approximate (no mapped trail; drawn from the terrain). Check it against a map before relying on it.
Why? 4 check notes
- 58% approximate geometry
- Taimazi meadow → Tanatseti glacier: bridge (snap_failed; one off-graph gap, 8.0 km)
- Tanatseti glacier → Laboda: glacier (snap_failed, 4.2 km)
- unresolved waypoints: Tanadon valley, Tanatseti west branch bivouac, East buttress
Elevation Profile
approximate line- Distance
- 12.2 km
- one way
- Ascent
- +2,722 m
- −233 m lost on the way up
- High Point
- 4,313 m
- Time Up
- 11h 04m
- DIN 33466
- Time Down
- 7h 45m
- DIN 33466 · same way back
From the Taimazi meadow at the head of the Digoria valley, cross the Khares by the bridge above its confluence with the Tanadon and follow the forest path on the right bank of the Tanadon, then alpine meadows and scree, to the snout of the Tanatseti glacier (3.5–4 hours). Get onto the glacier from the right-bank scree and moraines, walk up its flat surface to the icefall and bypass it on the moraines on the right. Roped up, cross the broad snow couloir that comes down from Laboda's north-east ridge, then climb the easy, partly snowy rock and scree of the south-east buttress of that ridge to the gentle upper part of the western branch of the Tanatseti glacier. Bivouac on the buttress rocks or on the glacier plateau, 8–10 hours from Taimazi. From the bivouac keep to the right side of the glacier to a small cirque below the south slopes of the north-east ridge, then turn left across the cirque plateau to the right-hand side of the east buttress of Main Laboda. Cross the bergschrund (belay) and climb the ice-snow slope along the rocks of the buttress, with several short rock steps (piton belays) and steep ice-snow sections, to the summit: 3–4 hours from the bivouac. Descend the same way; the guide gives 6–7 hours from the summit back to Taimazi. The 2B north-east ridge (E. Vasiliev and E. Levin, 1934) shares the approach and bivouac and reaches the top in a similar time by a 100 m ice-snow step on the ridge.
Start
Taimazi meadow1,825 m
- Bus from Vladikavkaz (bus station no. 1) to Stur-Digora, then onward by road to the camp; transfers can be arranged
- Parking at the trailhead
Waypoints
- Trailhead: Taimazi meadow1,825 m
Digoria (Komy-Art) alpine camp below Kubus, at the head of the Digoria road
- Feature: Tanatseti glacier3,114 m
Icefall bypassed on the right-bank moraines
- Summit: Laboda4,313 m
Key Passages
- Tanatseti icefall (bypassed on the right moraines)
- Snow couloir from the north-east ridge (cross roped)
- Bergschrund below the east buttress
- Ice-snow slope with short rock steps
Equipment
0/8 packedDownloads
Route confidence 50%Overview
A 4,313 m ice summit on the Main Caucasus Ridge at the head of Digoria in North Ossetia, with gentle glaciated slopes to the south-east and steep, iced north-west walls. Harold Raeburn's 1914 east-buttress route (Russian 2A) is a two-day glacier climb from the Digoria alpine camp.
The Laboda massif, with its Main and West summits, stands on the Main Caucasus Ridge between Geze-Tau to the west and Tsiteli to the east, above the Khares and Tanadon valleys of Digoria to the north and the upper Rioni (Racha, Georgia) to the south. A long north-east spur runs from the main summit along the Digoria valley and ends at the small Kubus summit above the Tanadon–Khares confluence, next to the Digoria alpine camp. Gentle ice-snow slopes fall south-east to the Tanatseti glacier; steep, heavily iced north-west walls drop to the Tsukhbuni glacier.
The Soviet guide lists eight routes on the massif: 2A and 2B lines on the main summit from the Tanatseti glacier, a 4A north buttress and a series of 5A–5B walls and ribs. The easy routes make it one of the more accessible 4,000 m summits of Digoria, though the approach is long: a full day from the camp to a high bivouac on the glacier. The guide notes that all ascents have been made from Digoria; none from the Georgian side.
The Digoria (Komy-Art) camp at about 1,850 m runs training courses and is the usual base.
Climbing Notes
Suitable for climbers with basic glacier skills, confident cramponing and some experience of belaying on mixed ground. Plan two days plus a spare day: a long first day (8–10 hours) from the Digoria camp to the bivouac on the western branch of the Tanatseti glacier, then 3–4 hours to the summit and 6–7 hours back to the camp. Acclimatise first, for example on Kubus and on the moraines around the camp. Rope up on the glacier and when crossing the snow couloir from the north-east ridge. The Digoria camp can arrange passes and instructors.
History
The first ascent was made in 1914 by the Scottish climber Harold Raeburn with R. Martinson, R. Richards and H. Tucker, by the east buttress. Soviet climbers E. Vasiliev and E. Levin climbed the north-east ridge on 12 August 1934. Harder routes followed in the 1960s and 1970s, including the right north-west rib (A. Stotsky's party, 1964, 5B) and the left north-west rib (V. Penchuk's party, 1971, 5B).
Season
Best Jul–Aug- January: Not advisable
- February: Not advisable
- March: Not advisable
- April: Not advisable
- May: Not advisable
- June: Possible
- July: Best (best window)
- August: Best (best window)
- September: Good
- October: Not advisable
- November: Not advisable
- December: Not advisable
- Jan
- Winter
- Feb
- Winter; the camp has run winter training courses
- Mar
- Winter
- Apr
- Avalanche season
- May
- Deep snow
- Jun
- Good snow but unsettled weather
- Jul
- Main season
- Aug
- Main season; more bare ice on the glacier
- Sep
- Stable weather, open crevasses
- Oct
- Early winter
- Nov
- Winter
- Dec
- Winter
Access & Permits
- Permits
- Border-zone pass (FSB Border Directorate, North Ossetia)Required
Upper Digoria is in Russia's border zone and a pass is needed to visit the Digoria camp and climb from it; for Russian citizens it can be arranged on site. Foreign nationals must apply well in advance (processing is reported as 30 working days or more).
kukarta.ru
- Hut Booking
- No huts on the route; camp at the Tanatseti bivouac. Base at the Digoria (Komy-Art) alpine camp: wooden cabins or your own tent.
- Fees
- Accommodation, meals and training at the Digoria (Komy-Art) camp are paid services
- Rules
- The summit is on the Georgia–Russia border; there is no legal crossing of the Main Caucasus Ridge. Do not descend to the Georgian (Rioni) side.
- Carry your passport and border-zone pass; expect checks by border guards
- The UK FCDO advises against all travel to Russia
- Getting There
Stur-Digora (village); Chikola and Vladikavkaz
Vladikavkaz Beslan (OGZ) or Nalchik (NAL)
- Bus from Vladikavkaz (bus station no. 1) to Stur-Digora, then by road up the Digoria valley to the camp; transfers from Vladikavkaz are available (about 120 km)
- From Nalchik: bus to Chikola, then onward by road
Hazards
- Glacier
- Crevasses
- Avalanche
- Rockfall
- Altitude
- Weather
- Remoteness